Brad Renfro’s friends are in mourning after the actor’s death from a suspected drug overdose.

Renfro was just 25 when he was found dead in his Los Angeles apartment on Tuesday (15Jan08).

One unnamed childhood pal has revealed how the child star of The Client moved on from marijuana to cocaine and then heroin as he struggled to cope with his fame.

She tells the New York Daily News, "He was known by the Knoxville, Tennessee Police Department as somewhat of a troublemaking kid. When he was 16 he was arrested for cocaine and marijuana and then again in 2005, he was busted on Skid Row (Los Angeles), allegedly buying heroin.

"He was uncomfortable with the side effects of stardom. There was a sadness in his eyes for someone so young, and he always had an air of trouble around him."

As his drug use escalated, his career nosedived. The friend adds, "Sometimes it would take days to reach him. It was known that he would have done more films had he not had a drug problem.